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Jewish festivals

Jewish Festivals and Days of Remembrance in Israel

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​Jewish festivals, originating in antiquity, are observed in
Israel intensively and in many ways. They are manifested in traditional and
nontraditional customs and practice, and they leave their imprint on diverse
aspects of national life. The Jewish festivals are the “landmarks” by which
Israelis mark the passing of the year. They are very much a part of daily life:
on the street, in the school system and in synagogues and homes around the
country.​

Shabbat, (the Sabbath - the weekly
day of rest) on Saturday, is marked in Israel with most people spending the day
together with family and friends. Public transport is suspended, businesses are
closed, essential services are at skeleton-staff strength, and leave is granted
to as many soldiers as possible. The secular majority take advantage of their
weekly day of rest for leisure time at the seashore, places of entertainment and
excursions in outdoor settings. The observant devote many hours to festive
family feasts and services in synagogue, desist from travel, and refrain from
working or using electrical appliances.

Rosh Hashanah marks the beginning
of the Jewish new year. Its origin is Biblical (Lev. 23:23-25): “a sacred
occasion commemorated with loud blasts [of the shofar, the ram’s horn].” The
term Rosh Hashanah, “beginning of the year,” is rabbinical, as are the
formidable themes of the festival: repentance, preparation for the day of Divine
judgment, and prayer for a fruitful year. The two-day festival falls on 1-2
Tishrei in the Jewish calendar, usually September in the
Gregorian calendar, and starts at sundown of the preceding evening, as do all
Jewish observances. Major customs of Rosh Hashanah include the sounding of the
shofar in the middle of a lengthy synagogue service that focuses on the festival
themes, and elaborate meals at home to inaugurate the new year. The prayer
liturgy is augmented with prayers of repentance.

In many senses, Israel begins its year on Rosh
Hashanah. Government correspondence, newspapers and most broadcasts carry
the “Jewish date” first. Felicitations for the new year are generally tendered
before Rosh Hashanah​.

Yom
Kippur, eight days after Rosh Hashanah, is the day of
atonement, of Divine judgment, and of “affliction of souls” (Lev. 23:26-32) so
that the individual may be cleansed of sins. The only fast day decreed in the
Bible, it is a time to enumerate one’s misdeeds and contemplate one’s faults.
The Jew is expected, on this day, to pray for forgiveness for sins between man
and God and correct his wrongful actions against his fellow man. The major
precepts of Yom Kippur - lengthy devotional services and a 25-hour fast
- are observed even by much of the otherwise secular population. The level of
public solemnity on Yom Kippur surpasses that of any other festival,
including Rosh Hashanah. The country comes to a complete halt for 25
hours on this day; places of entertainment are closed, there are no television
and radio broadcasts (not even the news), public transport is suspended, and
even the roads are completely closed. Yom Kippur in Israel has special
meaning due to memories of the1973
war, a surprise attack launched by Egypt and Syria against Israel on that
very day.

Sukkot, described in the Bible (Lev.23:34) as the
“Feast of Tabernacles” begins five days after Yom Kippur).
Sukkot is one of the three festivals that were celebrated (until 70 CE)
with mass pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem and are therefore known as the
“pilgrimage festivals.” On Sukkot, Jews commemorate the Exodus from
Egypt (c. 13th century BCE) and give thanks for a bountiful harvest. At some
kibbutzim, Sukkot is celebrated as Chag Ha’asif (the harvest
festival), with the themes of the gathering of the second grain crop and the
autumn fruit, the start of the agricultural year, and the first
rains.

In the five days between Yom Kippur and
Sukkot, tens of thousands of householders and businesses erect
sukkot - booths for temporary dwelling, resembling the booths in which
the Israelites lived in the desert, after their exodus from Egypt - and acquire
the palm frond, citron, myrtle sprigs and willow branches with which the festive
prayer rite is augmented. All around the country, sukkot line parking
lots, balconies, rooftops, lawns, and public spaces. No army base lacks one.
Some spend the festival and the next six days literally living in their
sukkot, while most observers just eat their meals there.

In Israel, the “holy day” portion of Sukkot (and
the other two pilgrimage festivals, Passover and Shavuot) is celebrated
for one day. Diaspora communities celebrate it for two days, commemorating the
time in antiquity when calendation was performed at the Temple and its results
reported to the Diaspora using a tenuous network of signal fires and
couriers.

The prayer liturgy is augmented with additional prayers,
including the Hallel, a collection of blessings and psalms, recited on
Rosh Hodesh (the beginning of each lunar month) and on the pilgrimage
festivals.

After the festive day, Sukkot continues at a lesser
level of sanctity, as mandated by the Torah (Lev. 23:36). During this
intermediate week - half festival, half ordinary - schools are closed and many
workplaces shut down or shorten their hours. Most Israelis spend the interim
days of Sukkot and Passover at recreation sites throughout the
country.

The intermediate week and the holiday season end on
Shemini Atseret, the “sacred occasion of the eighth day” (Lev. 23:36),
with which Simhat Torah is combined. Celebration of Shemini
Atseret/Simhat Torah focuses on the Torah and is noted for public dancing
with a Torah scroll in one’s arms and with recitation of the concluding and
beginning chapters of the Torah, renewing the yearly cycle of Torah reading.
After dark, many communities sponsor further festivities, often outdoors, that
are not limited by the ritual restrictions that apply on the holy day itself​.

Hanukkah, beginning on 25 Kislev
(usually in December), commemorates the triumph of the Jews, under the
Maccabees, over the Greek rulers (164 BCE) - both the physical victory of the
small Jewish nation against mighty Greece and the spiritual victory of the
Jewish faith against the Hellenism of the Greeks. Its sanctity derives from this
spiritual aspect of the victory, and the miracle of the flask of oil, when a
portion of sacramental olive oil meant to keep the Temple candelabrum lit for
one day lasted for eight days, the time it took for the Temple to be
rededicated.

Hanukkah is observed in Israel, as in the Diaspora,
for eight days. The central feature of this holiday is the lighting of candles
each evening - one on the first night, two on the second, and so on - in
commemoration of the miracle at the Temple. The Hanukkah message in
Israel focuses strongly on aspects of restored sovereignty; customs widely
practiced in the Diaspora, such as giftgiving and the dreidl (spinning
top - sevivon in Hebrew), are also in evidence. The dreidl’s sides are
marked with Hebrew initials representing the message “A great miracle occurred
here”; in the Diaspora, the initials stand for “A great miracle occurred there.”
Schools are closed during this week; workplaces are not.

Tu B'Shevat, the fifteenth of Shevat
(January-February), cited in rabbinical sources as the new year of fruit trees
for sabbatical, tithing, and other purposes, has almost no ritual impact. But it
has acquired secular connotations as a day when trees are planted by
individuals, especially by schoolchildren and it serves as the time when
intensive afforestation is undertaken by the Jewish National Fund and local
authorities. During this month, although it is still cold, the fruit trees begin
to flower, starting with the almond tree.

Purim, another rabbinical festival in
early spring, occurs on 14 Adar (15 Adar in walled cities), commemorating the
deliverance of beleaguered Jewry in the Persian Empire under Artaxerxes, as
recounted in the Scroll of Esther. This festival compensates for the solemnity
of many other Jewish observances by mandating merriment. Schools are closed,
public festivities abound, newspapers run hoax items reminiscent of April Fools’
Day, children (and adults) don costumes, and a festive reading of the Scroll of
Esther is marked by noisemakers sounded whenever the villain Haman’s name is
recited. The Orthodox indulge in inebriation, within limits, and carry out an
exacting list of duties: giving of alms, evening and morning readings of the
Scroll of Esther, exchange of delicacies and a full-fledged holiday feast.

Passover (Pessah), is celebrated in
the spring, beginning on 15 Nisan. Passover is the festival celebrating the
Exodus from Egypt (c. 13th century BCE) and liberation from bondage. Freedom is,
indeed, the festival’s dominant theme. The rites of Passover begin long before
the festival, as families and businesses cleanse their premises of hametz -
leaven and anything containing it - as prescribed in the Bible (Ex. 12:15-20).
The day before the festival is devoted to preparatory rituals including
ceremonial burning of the forbidden foodstuff. On the holiday evening, the seder
is recited: an elaborate retelling of the enslavement and redemption. At this
festive meal, the extended family gathers to read the Haggadah and enjoy
traditional foods, particularly matza (unleavened bread). The following day’s
observances resemble those of the other pilgrimage festivals.

Passover is probably second only to Yom Kippur in traditional
observance by the generally nonobservant. In addition, a secular Passover rite
based on the festival’s agricultural connotations is practiced in some
kibbutzim. It serves as a spring festival, a festival of freedom, and the date
of the harvesting of the first ripe grain. Passover also includes the second
“intermediate” week - five half-sacred, half-ordinary days devoted to extended
prayer and leisure - and it concludes with another festival day.

On Holocaust Martyrs' and Heroes' Remembrance Day, less
than a week after Passover, the people of Israel commune with the memory of the
six million martyrs of the Jewish people who perished at the hands of the Nazis
in the Holocaust. Modern rites of public bereavement and special ceremonies are
held. On this day a siren is sounded at 10 a.m., as the nation observes two
minutes of silence, pledging “to remember, and to remind others never to forget."

Remembrance Day for the Fallen of Israel's
Wars is commemorated a week later, as a day honoring those who fell in
the struggle for the establishment of the State of Israel and in its defense. At
8 p.m. on the eve of Remembrance Day and at 11 a.m. on the following morning,
two minutes of silence, as a siren sounds, give the entire nation the
opportunity to remember its debt and express its eternal gratitude to its sons
and daughters who gave their lives for the achievement of the country’s
independence and its continued existence.

Independence Day (5 Iyar) directly follows
Remembrance Day for the Fallen of Israel’s Warsand is held on the
anniversary of the Declaration
of the Establishment of the State of Israel (May 14, 1948). While this is
not a centuries-old celebration, it is a day that means a lot to many citizens
who have physically and actively participated in the creation of a new state and
its struggle for survival, and have witnessed the enormous changes that have
taken place since 1948. On the eve of Independence Day municipalities sponsor
public celebrations, loud-speakers broadcast popular music and multitudes go
“downtown” to participate in the holiday spirit.

Many synagogues also hold special services of thanksgiving,
where Hallel is recited marking Israel’s national
deliverance.

On Independence Day, many citizens get to know the
countryside by travelling to battlefields of the War of Independence, visit the
memorials to the fallen, go on nature hikes and, in general, spend the day
outdoors picnicking and having barbecues.

Israel Prizes for distinction in literary, artistic and
scientific endeavor are presented and the International Bible Contest for Jewish
Youth is held. Army bases are opened to the public and air force fly-bys, as
well as naval displays, take place.

Lag B'Omer (18 Iyar), the
thirty-third day in the counting of the weeks between Passover and Shavuot, has
become a children’s celebration featuring massive bonfires. It commemorates
events at the time of the Bar-Kochba uprising against Rome (132-135 CE).

Jerusalem Day is celebrated on 28
Iyar, about a week before Shavuot, and commemorates the 1967
reunification of Jerusalem, the capital of Israel, after it had been divided by
concrete walls and barbed wire for 19 years. On this day, we are reminded that
Jerusalem is “the focal point of Jewish history, the symbol of ancient glory,
spiritual fulfillment and modern renewal.” Hallel is recited in some
synagogues​.

Shavuot, the last of the pilgrimage
festivals, when enumerated from the beginning of the Jewish year, falls seven
weeks after Passover (6 Sivan), at the end of the barley harvest and the
beginning of the wheat harvest. The Bible (Deut. 16:10) describes this occasion
as the festival of weeks (Heb. shavuot), for so is it counted from
Passover, and as the occasion on which new grain and new fruits are offered to
the priests in the Temple. Its additional definition - the anniversary of the
giving of the Torah at Mt. Sinai - is of rabbinical origin. Shavuot is
observed among the Orthodox with marathon religious study and, in Jerusalem,
with a mass convocation of festive worship at the Western Wall. In the
kibbutzim, it marks the peak of the new grain harvest and the ripening of the
first fruits, including the seven species mentioned in the Bible (wheat, barley,
grapes, figs, pomegranates, olives and dates).The
Ninth of Av (Tisha B’Av, falling in July or early
August), commemorates the anniversary of the destruction of the First and Second
Temples. On the day itself, numerous rules of bereavement and the Yom Kippur
measures of “self-denial,” including a full-day fast, are in effect.

Other Celebrations

Ethnic communities observe additional rites and celebrations of their own.
Some better-known celebrations include the Mimouna,
unique to Moroccan Jewry, on the day after Passover, celebrating the renewal of
nature and its blessings; and the Saharana of Kurdish
Jewry, after Sukkot, which was the national holiday of the Jews in
Kurdistan. Another event is the Sigd holiday of the
Ethiopian Jewish community, in mid-November, a celebration which began in
Ethiopia, expressing their yearning for Zion, and continues in Israel today as
an expression of their thankfulness.

Thus, with its diverse population and multiple lifestyles and attitudes,
Israel celebrates the cycle of Jewish festivals and observances in a public
manner that underscores the country’s Jewishness and its centrality to Judaism​.

Calendar of Jewish holidays

Name of Festival

Hebrew Date

Gregorian Date

5772

2011

Rosh Hashanah

1-2 Tishre

29-30 Sept

Fast of Gedaliah

4 Tishre

2 Oct

Yom Kippur

10 Tishre

8 Oct

Sukkot

15-21 Tishre

13-19 Oct

Shemini Atzeret-Simchat Torah

22 Tishre

20 Oct

Hannukah

25 Kislev - 2 Tevet

21-28 Dec

2012

Tu B'Shevat

15 Shevat

8 Feb

Fast of Estherrecalling Queen Esther's three-day fast in her efforts to persuade Artaxerxes to rescind the genocidal designs of his advisor, t​​he evil Haman (6th century BCE)

13 Adar

7 March

Purim

14 or 15 Adar B

8/9 March

Passover

15-21 Nisan

6-13 April

Holocaust Martyrs' and Heroes' Remembrance Day

27 Nisan

19 April

Remembrance Day

3 Iyar

25 April

Independence Day

4 Iyar

26 April

Lag B'Omer

18 Iyar

10 May

Jerusalem Day

28 Iyar

20 May

Shavuot

6 Sivan

27 May

17th of Tammuzdesignating the occasion when the Babylonian army (586 BCE) and later Roman forces (70 CE) breached the walls of Jerusalem, in preparation for the destruction of the First and later the Second Temple